Dr Sylvain Lemofouet, Co-Founder & CEO, Enairys Powertech, in this interview with Suchi Adhikari, discusses the trends noticed in the cleantech industry, sustainable development, and the significance of the Swissnex Cleantech Week in India. Excerpts…

What are the latest trends and developments in clean energy storage solutions in India as well as globally? How is Enairys Powertech coping with these developments?

The global market for energy storage solutions is growing fast, mainly driven by electro-mobility and the deployment of renewable energies. Electrochemical batteries (Lead Acid, Lithium, Sodium-sulphur, etc) are currently taking the most advantage of this trend. After more than a decade of technology and product development, Enairys is now tapping into this market scene with its innovative Hydro - Pneumatic Energy Storage (HyPES) system, a non-chemical and more sustainable alternative solution primarily intended to support decentralised power generation from intermittent renewable sources (photovoltaic, wind, etc).

With environmental concerns taking prominence globally, manufacturers are looking for increasingly sustainable and ecofriendly solutions. What are the solutions that Enairys Powertech offers, which can cater to this demand?

Enairys proposes an eco-friendly, integrated energy storage and management solution based on compressed air, which provides many benefits that are mainly based on electrochemical batteries. We offer environmental friendliness—due to the use of natural components, easy-to-recycle metals, all-in-one turnkey solution—with the possibility to combine various power sources (wind, photovoltaic, grid, etc), multi-energy solution—due to the capability to deliver or store electricity, air, heat and cold at the same time, thus optimising the overall energy efficiency. We also offer long service life (+20 years)—related to hydropneumatic and power electronics, and cost competitiveness.

With the global focus on the Indian market, what is your company’s commitment to the Indian market?

India has an ambitious program for rural electrification and development of renewable energies, and energy storage is a key enabling technology which is necessary to achieve these goals. Enairys’s commitment to the Indian market is to supply our clean, smart and affordable energy storage and management solutions to support and participate in the implementation of this program in a sustainable and economically viable way.

As a recent delegate of the Swissnex Cleantech Week India 2018, what challenges and opportunities do you foresee for the cleantech industry?

The main challenge I see for cleantech industry in India is the reduction of the cost of clean solutions to an acceptable level for massive adoption. I am afraid that without public support, this will take time particularly for the energy field, which is a capital-intensive industry; and we don’t have time to address the aforementioned issues. The main opportunity I see is the growing demand for environmentally friendly solutions, driven by local and global concerns. What I realised during my visit is that an effective political willingness is required to address these issues through the creation of favourable regulatory framework for clean technologies and realisation of several mega-projects of renewable energies. So, I think a positive momentum has been initiated to ensure a bright future for cleantech in India where the market potential is huge and Enairys is willing to be part of this future.

What are your company’s short-term and long-term plans for the Indian market?

Our short-term goal is to find a strong strategic Indian partner to produce and commercialise our innovative products in the Indian market. The idea is to firstly build pilot installations to test and validate the market, then develop this market, and later, set up a local production facility and distribution network to successfully serve the whole country.